Tag Archives: new pistol 2025

New: Beretta 92SB 50th Anniversary Limited Edition Pistol

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Beretta is marking a half-century of the legendary Model 92, the company has released a retro SB variant of the type that went on to make history.

The original Model 92 hit the market in 1975, one of the first double-stack double-action/single-action pistols available, and soon went on to become a global icon. The company has been honoring the lineage of the “Italian Stallion” this year with limited-edition offerings, and the repro 92SB comes as part of Beretta’s “Celebrating 50 Years of the 90 Series” program.

The repro 92SB is full of classic features such as a polished anodized frame, polished blued slide and barrel, a rounded trigger guard, and a flat dust cover. On the inside, it features all-metal components and upgraded internals, including a short reset trigger bar and D hammer spring. It runs a slide-mounted Type F safety lever.

Beretta 92SB repro
The new 92SB is engraved “Celebrating 50 Years of the 90 Series” on the left side of the slide and has a 1 of 1,526 serial number range, the latter an ode to Beretta’s first firearm contract. (Photos unless noted: Beretta) 
Beretta 92SB repro
Note the ambi Type F safety and all metal components, other than the G10 grip panels. 
Beretta 92SB repro
You have to love the polished externals. 
Beretta 92SB repro
The repro 92SB is a Beretta through and through and ships with a pair of classic-style 15-round magazines with flat base pads. 
Beretta 92SB repro
Finished with G10 grips, each pistol comes in special collector’s packaging, including a challenge coin and a history booklet chronicling the 90 Series legacy. 

The history behind the 92SB

The 92SB was the third production model of the 92 series, building on 1977’s Model 92S, which added the slide-mounted safety/decocker to the pistol. Debuting in 1980, the SB added an automatic firing pin block and an ambidextrous safety lever, and was marketed in both the standard and a compact model, the first for the 90 series.

Beretta 92SB ad

The Beretta 92SB hit the market in 1980, with the 92SB Compact arriving the next year. 
Beretta 92SB ad
The gun found fast success with consumers as well as LE/military customers. 
Beretta 92SB ad
It was soon adopted by the Connecticut State Police in 1983, among many departments. 

Perhaps the 92SB’s greatest claim to fame was that it was submitted to the Army Pistol Trials in 1984 and 1986, which it won, and, with modifications including a squared trigger guard, a matte finish, and a chrome-lined barrel, became the 92SB-F, later just shortened to 92F.

The rest is history.
Army's Pistol Trials,

The Beretta 92SB beat out a crowded field in 1984-86 to win the Army’s Pistol Trials, with the modified 92SB-F being adopted as the M9. (Image: 1986 GAO Report)

The MSRP on the new Beretta 92SB repro is an appropriate $1,526.

CZ P-10 C Ported: Best Budget Compensated 9mm?

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The big takeaway on this model is that it takes a well-liked gun that has been around for almost a decade and gives it a series of small updates, as well as an integrated single-port compensator.

The compact, semi-automatic, striker-fired P-10 C 9mm was first introduced in 2017 and has continued to evolve over the past decade. Featuring a 15+1 magazine capacity, its 4-inch cold hammer-forged barrel, in addition to its new compensator, now sports a heavier profile to help keep the gun flat. The sights have been brought over from the new Nocturne P-09 series. The optics footprint uses a plate system.

CZ P-10 C Ported Optics-Ready Compensated 9mm Pistol
The P-10 C Ported has an overall length of 7.3 inches. Note the large port on the 4-inch heavy barrel, directed out the top of the slide, which creates a setback on the front sight. (All photos: Chris Eger/Guns.com)
CZ P-10 C Ported Optics-Ready Compensated 9mm Pistol
The unloaded weight is 26.8 ounces.
CZ P-10 C Ported Optics-Ready Compensated 9mm Pistol
The pistol is roughly the same size as the G19. 
CZ P-10 C Ported Optics-Ready Compensated 9mm Pistol
And compared to the company’s recently introduced P-09C Nocturne. 

The short answer to this one is that the CZ P-10 C Ported is one of the most reliable pistols we have evaluated. Over the course of about 800 mixed rounds across several ammo types and loads, we did not have a single stoppage.

We didn’t even suffer from a slide failing to lock back on an empty mag. And that is on a gun right out of the box with no additional lube or prep.

CZ P-10 C Ported Optics-Ready Compensated 9mm Pistol
The P-10 series has a reputation as one of the most durable and reliable pistols on the market. One of our favorite exports from Czechia. We feel Jan Zizka would approve. 
CZ P-10 C Ported Optics-Ready Compensated 9mm Pistol
The majority of what we fed the P-10 C was Remington 115-grain FMJ Range 1,145 fps bulk pack (500 rounds loose-packed inside a bag in a cardboard box). 
CZ P-10 C Ported Optics-Ready Compensated 9mm Pistol
Swapping it up, other loads included Federal’s red-tipped 150-grain Syntech Action Pistol flat-nosed rounds, CCI Blazer 115-grain FMJ, Winchester 124-grain NATO ball, and Federal’s 147-grain Gold Medal Action Pistol.
CZ P-10 C Ported Optics-Ready Compensated 9mm Pistol
After chugging through about 700 rounds of range loads, we switched to self-defense rounds and found the P-10 C to run Speer 124-grain Gold Dot, Federal 124-grain Punch, and 135-grain Hydra Shok Deep JHPs without issue. 
CZ P-10 C Ported Optics-Ready Compensated 9mm Pistol
Besides enduring use with the Czech military and others, the German Army recently tapped CZ to provide as many as 186,000 P-10Cs to replace that country’s P8 (Heckler & Koch USP) series pistol. 

The full review is in my column at Guns.com.

Smith reboots the 9mm snub nose

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Out of production for more than a quarter century, the moon-clipped S&W 940 snub-nosed wheel gun has been resurrected – and modernized.

The original 940 was a 9mm companion to the classic .357 Magnum Model 640, a hard-wearing stainless five-shot double-action-only J-frame Centennial series revolver with a snag-free concealed hammer. Using a moon clip to hold the rimless 9mm rounds, it was fast and easy to reload while opening the revolver to a wide range of easy-to-find ammo.

While the 940 was only produced between 1991 and 1998, huge advances in bullet and propellant design have made 9mm more popular than ever, meaning that in many cases, the variety of self-defense loads available at local retailers in the caliber is greater than any other. With that in mind, rebooting the 940 makes sense.

Further, the new model ships with an XS Tritium night sight in front, something the old model never had. Oh, yeah, and it has VZ black cherry grips and a fluted barrel.

The new S&W 940 in 9mm is a five-shot DAO snub-nose with a concealed hammer. Note the 2.17-inch 1:10 RH twist stainless-steel fluted barrel. Height is a pocketable 4.38 inches. Weight is 23.5 ounces.

The MSRP is supposed to be $999 on these.

CZ Salutes WWII Free Czech RAF Squadrons

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CZ is marking the 80th anniversary of the end of World War II with a salute to the often unsung “Free Czechs” who served with the Allies with a special Spitfire-themed CZ 75.

Occupied by Germany on the eve of the conflict, just months before the shooting started, thousands of Czechs escaped to continue the fight against a common enemy.

Some 2,500 Czechs served in the British RAF during WWII, filling three fighter squadrons (No. 310, 312, and 313), one bomber squadron (No. 311), and one night fighter squadron (No. 68) as well as flying alongside British pilots in other squadrons. They also played a vital role in No. 138 Special Squadron, an outfit that dropped agents and supplies into occupied Europe– including Czechoslovakia.

A Czech Spitfire pilot of No. 313 Squadron
A Czech Spitfire pilot of No. 313 Squadron in conversation with his rigger and fitter at Hornchurch, 8 April 1942. (Photo: Imperial War Museum)

 

These men, exiles far from home, chalked up over 28,000 fighter sorties (at least 16 Czech “aces” flew with the RAF), dropped 2.6 million pounds of bombs on enemy targets, and made a difference from the Battle of Britain to the beaches of Normandy and beyond. Nearly 500 were killed in action.

The CZ 75 RAF special edition
The CZ 75 RAF special edition emulates the famed Supermarine Spitfire fighter aircraft, which was flown by many of the Czech fighter pilots serving with the British during the war. (All photos unless noted: CZ)
The CZ 75 RAF special edition
The CZ 75 RAF includes lightening cuts in the slide that recall the exhaust stacks of the Spitfire’s Rolls-Royce Merlin engine, as well as a finish that includes “riveted” body panels. 
The CZ 75 RAF special edition
The grips include a set of Czech aviator’s wings. 

 

The CZ 75 RAF special edition
The serial number sequencing starts with one of the Czech RAF squadrons, in this case, No. 310 Fighter Squadron. Note the British “bullseye” roundel. 
The CZ 75 RAF special edition
And it is repeated on the front of the slide. 
The CZ 75 RAF special edition
The magazine base has a stylized RAF. 
The CZ 75 RAF special edition
The RAF’s Latin motto, going back to 1918, “Per Ardua ad Astra,” which translates to “Through Adversity to the Stars,” is carried. 
The CZ 75 RAF special edition
Note the Czech roundel, which is still carried on the country’s military aircraft.
The CZ 75 RAF special edition
The CZ 75 RAF is a thing of beauty. 
The CZ 75 RAF special edition
Besides the pistol itself, its unique case recalls the avionics panel on the Spitfire, while its key is in the shape of the aircraft. Also included are an embroidered squadron badge patch and a hand-painted and signed Spitfire illustration by the well-known Czech painter and illustrator Jaroslav Velc.

 

Price? Availability? Just 56 CZ 75 RAF models will be created and will be offered…soon.

On a side note, as CZ now owns Colt, it would be neat to think that, at some point in the future, there may be a similar line of 1911s that salute famed American military units. Send those emails, folks!

Meet the New Springfield Armory Kuna

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After leaving cookie crumbs around the world for months, Springfield Armory on Tuesday announced that the Kuna large format pistol platform is available in the U.S.– and we’ve been kicking one around for a few months.

Designed by popular Croatian gunmaker HS Produkt, the Springfield Armory Kuna (Croatian for “Pine Marten,” the national animal of that country) sub-gun first surfaced last October when it beat the top-shelf B&T APC40 and Steyr M40 for a contract with the PMESP, the Sao Paulo Military Police – the largest police force in Brazil. Chambered in .40 S&W, it also appeared at EnforceTac in Germany back in February with a promised 9mm variant inbound as well. The word was that the svelte little burp gun, using an advanced roller-locked system of operation, had been developed with international counter-terror teams in mind.

Now, it is available in a semi-auto pistol variant in the U.S., initially just in 9mm. It will be sold at launch in a standalone pistol variant as well as a more deluxe version sold with an installed Strike Industries side-folding stabilizing brace. The MSRP varies between $999 to $1,149, with the braced model running higher.

The overall length of the brace-equipped Springfield Armory Kuna is 24.5 inches with the brace deployed and a more compact 15.5 inches folded. The gun can be fired in either position. (All photos unless noted: Chris Eger/Guns.com)

Nobody was looking for the Kuna to roll into 2025 and instantly turn heads. Well-made 9mm large-format handguns in the SMG/PCC style have been increasingly popular in recent years, and it is clear that the folks behind the Kuna did their homework and did it well. You get a smooth-shooting and reliable platform that allows easy use with suppressors, lights, and optics for right around $1K. Taking notes from the Echelon, Hellcat, and Hellion when it comes to ergonomics and sights, Springfield is playing the hits here. It feels like a smoother and more updated version of the MP5K on the range.

The full review is over in my column at Guns.com.

Don’t Worry About the Gluger, the Gluger Can’t Hurt You (But the Gluger is Real)

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The new Ruger RMX. (Photos: Chris Eger/Guns.com)

Ruger and Magpul have teamed up to produce a new 9mm handgun complete with a modular stainless-steel chassis system, which could be a universal adapter.

Dubbed the RXM, the new pistol is striker-fired and familiar, having the same general dimensions as many popular carry guns of the past few decades.

Compared to popular carry guns such as the Glock 19, S&W M&P9 Compact M2.0, and CZ P09 Nocturne, the Ruger RXM seems very familiar.

Diving deeper, it has a serialized Fire Control Insert that is independent of its grip frame, which gives it the flexibility to be easily swapped into different grips – which are developed and produced by Magpul. Optics-ready with a Tritium front sight, it runs popular 15-round G19-pattern mags.

Can you say, “chassis system?”

American-made, the RXM has an MSRP of $499. For that, you get a G19 Gen 3 feeling pistol, made in the U.S. (not in Brazil or Turkey), with probably the most popular double-stack 9mm magazine pattern, complete with steel night sights and an optics cut. Plus, the removable chassis system, backed up with grip modules from Magpul, gives it some serious modularity.

Ruger has long had problems bringing a 9mm pistol to market that people really, really liked. RXM could see that change.

I’ve been shooting one for the past few months, and the full review is after the jump.

The Gun Glock Should Have Made

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For the neat 30-year span between 1988, when the Glock 19 was introduced, and 2018 when the SIG P365 appeared, the 7.36-inch long, 4-inch barreled, 15+1 shot, 24-ounce unloaded G19 was the magic box of dimensions that every pistol maker chased.

Today, we have the new Springfield Armory Echelon 4.0C, which is 7.25 inches long with a 4-inch barrel, uses 15+1/18+1 magazines, and is 24 ounces, unloaded.

Unlike Glock, the Echelon has a chassis system that can be swapped around multiple grip modules of varying size and color and has a far better and more adaptable optics mounting system than Glock’s MOS plates.

Plus, it’s reliable, has ambi controls, a decent trigger, and much better sights.

The Echelon 4.0C could offer a good multi-purpose pistol for either home defense, especially with a good weapon-mounted light, or carry.

Full review in my column over at Guns.com.